U.S. patent application number 12/089055 was filed with the patent office on 2008-11-13 for ear-thermometer with ear identification.
This patent application is currently assigned to KONINKLIJKE PHILIPS ELECTRONICS N. V.. Invention is credited to Ton H. Akkermans, Daniel Schobben.
Application Number | 20080281169 12/089055 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 37714377 |
Filed Date | 2008-11-13 |
United States Patent
Application |
20080281169 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Akkermans; Ton H. ; et
al. |
November 13, 2008 |
Ear-Thermometer With Ear Identification
Abstract
A physiological measurement device (10) that concurrently
measures a physiological state of an individual and determines an
identity of the individual includes at least a measurement
component (12), an identification component (14), and processing
component (16). The measurement component (12) measures the
physiological state of the individual, and the identification
component (14) concurrently determines the identity of the
individual. The processing component (16) associates the
physiological state of the individual with the identity of the
individual.
Inventors: |
Akkermans; Ton H.;
(Veldhoven, NL) ; Schobben; Daniel; (Waalre,
NL) |
Correspondence
Address: |
PHILIPS INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY & STANDARDS
595 MINER ROAD
CLEVELAND
OH
44143
US
|
Assignee: |
KONINKLIJKE PHILIPS ELECTRONICS N.
V.
Eindhoven
NL
|
Family ID: |
37714377 |
Appl. No.: |
12/089055 |
Filed: |
September 14, 2006 |
PCT Filed: |
September 14, 2006 |
PCT NO: |
PCT/IB2006/053299 |
371 Date: |
April 3, 2008 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
60725148 |
Oct 7, 2005 |
|
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
600/301 ;
600/549; 600/559 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G01J 5/049 20130101;
A61B 5/01 20130101; G06K 9/00362 20130101; A61B 5/117 20130101;
A61B 5/00 20130101; A61B 5/1171 20160201; G01J 5/04 20130101; G01J
5/0846 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
600/301 ;
600/549; 600/559 |
International
Class: |
A61B 5/00 20060101
A61B005/00; G01K 5/22 20060101 G01K005/22 |
Claims
1. A physiological measurement device that concurrently measures a
physiological state of an individual and determines an identity of
the individual, comprising: a measurement component that measures
the physiological state of the individual; an identification
component that concurrently determines the identity of the
individual; and a processing component that associates the
physiological state of the individual with the identity of the
individual.
2. The physiological measurement device as set forth in claim 1,
wherein the measurement component includes an electronic ear
thermometer that measures a temperature of the individual from an
ear of the individual.
3. The physiological measurement device as set forth in claim 1,
wherein the identification component determines the identity of the
individual from the same information used by the measurement
component to determine the physiological state of the
individual.
4. The physiological measurement device as set forth in claim 1,
wherein the identification component uses one of a reflected sound
and an otoacoustic technique to determine the identity of the
individual.
5. The physiological measurement device as set forth in claim 1,
wherein the measurement component measures at least one of
temperature, blood pressure, eye pressure, heart rate, heart
electrical activity, pulse, and blood oxygen level of the
individual.
6. The physiological measurement device as set forth in claim 1,
wherein the identification component determines the identity of the
individual through biometric identification including at least one
of a unique physical characteristic of an ear, a fingerprint, and
an iris map.
7. The physiological measurement device as set forth in claim 1,
further including: a storage component for storing multiple
temperatures for a plurality of individuals, wherein each
temperature is associated with a corresponding individual based on
the identity of the individual as determined by the identification
component.
8. The physiological measurement device as set forth in claim 1,
further including: a display component for displaying the
temperature and the identity of the individual.
9. The physiological measurement device as set forth in claim 1,
further including: portable storage for transferring stored
temperatures and identity information from the system to devices
that reads the portable storage.
10. The physiological measurement device as set forth in claim 1,
further including: a network component for conveying the
temperature and the identity of the individual to other devices
over a network.
11. The physiological measurement device as set forth in claim 1,
further including: a shaft that houses the measurement component
and the identification component, the shaft is designed to be
inserted within an ear of the individual.
12. The physiological measurement device as set forth in claim 1,
the physiological measurement system uses a local body area network
to convey the physiological state information and the identity of
the individual to other components.
13. An ear thermometer with ear identification device, comprising:
a probe including: an ear thermometer that measures a temperature
of an individual, and an identification component that determines
an identity of the individual, the identification component; a
processing component that associates the temperature with the
identity; and a display component for presenting the temperature
and an indication of the identity of the individual.
14. The ear thermometer with ear identification device as set forth
in claim 13, wherein the ear thermometer includes: a sensor that
captures signals emitted from within an ear canal; and a signal
processing system that converts the collected signal to a
temperature.
15. The ear thermometer with ear identification device as set forth
in claim 13, wherein the sensor is an infrared sensor that captures
heat waves emitted from within an ear of the individual.
16. The ear thermometer with ear identification device as set forth
in claim 13, wherein the identification component includes a
plurality of transceivers that emit acoustic signals into an ear
canal of the individual and that receive signals reflected from the
physical structured within the ear, wherein the received signals
uniquely identify the individual.
17. The ear thermometer with ear identification device as set forth
in claim 13, wherein the identification component uses one of a
reflected sound and an otoacoustic approach to determine the
identity of the individual.
18. The ear thermometer with ear identification device as set forth
in claim 13, further including at least one of: portable storages;
and a network component for transferring the temperature and the
identity of the individual to other devices.
19. A method for measuring a physiological state of an individual
and determining an identity the individual, comprising:
concurrently determining: a physiological state of the individual,
and an identity of the individual; and associating the
physiological state with the identity of the individual.
20. The method as set forth in claim 19, wherein the physiological
state is one of a temperature, a blood pressure, an eye pressure, a
heart rate, a heart electrical signal, a pulse, and a blood oxygen
level.
21. The method as set forth in claim 19, further including: storing
a plurality of temperatures, each of which is associated with an
identity of a corresponding individual; displaying the plurality of
temperatures with the identity information; and transferring the
stored temperatures and identity information to at least one other
device.
Description
[0001] The following relates to sensing physiological information
emitted by an individual and concurrently biometrically identifying
the individual through a single device. It finds particular
application to concurrently sensing a temperature of the individual
and identifying the individual via an ear-thermometer with ear
biometric identification componentry. Other applications are also
contemplated.
[0002] Conventionally, a temperature of an individual is obtained
through fluid-filled or electronic thermometers. Both types of
thermometers are used to obtain oral, auxiliary, and rectal
temperatures. Some electronic thermometers also measure temperature
from the eardrum of the individual. For example, tympanic
("in-the-ear") thermometers measure the temperature of the
tympanum, or tympanic membrane, which is a thin membrane that
separates the outer ear from the middle ear, via an infrared
measurement. Typically, tympanic thermometers are simple hand-held
devices with a probe that is inserted into the ear canal to measure
the patient's temperature.
[0003] Electronic thermometers are commonly used at health care
facilities (e.g., hospitals, clinics, doctor offices, etc.),
infirmaries in businesses, educational institutions and day cares,
home, etc. In these settings, a single electronic thermometer
typically is used to measure the temperature of more than one
individual, sometimes within a relatively short period of time. In
order to prevent forgetting a temperature and/or associating a
temperature with the wrong individual, the user of the electronic
thermometer typically records the temperature shortly after it is
obtained. By way of example, a nurse in a hospital caring for a
plurality of patients typically uses the same thermometer,
stethoscope, sphygmomanometer, etc. when collecting vital signs for
the patients. Upon measuring the temperature of a particular
patient, the nurse records the temperature, and associates the
recorded temperature with the patient. For instance, the nurse may
record the temperature in a patient chart or write the temperature
next to a unique identification (e.g., the individual's name,
social security number, patient number, room number, etc.). After
obtaining and recording the patient's vital signs, the nurse
replaces a disposable cover, disinfects the instrument, or the
like, and moves on to the next patient. Similarly, a parent at home
may have more than one ill child. Likewise, the parent typically
measures, records and associates each child's temperature on a
child by child basis.
[0004] Manually recording and associating temperatures of
individuals is susceptible to human error. For instance, the user
may inadvertently record an incorrect temperature. In another
instance, the temperature of a first individual may be mistakenly
associated with a different individual. In yet another instance, an
identification wrist band or other identifying indicia may include
erroneous information or be affixed to the wrong individual. In
still another instance, the identification wrist band or other
identifying indicia may have been tampered with such that the
correct identity of the individual cannot be readily obtained from
it. In another instance, an individual lends his/her identification
wrist band to someone else, which can lead to erroneous operations,
blood transfusions, etc. in the worst case leading to death. One or
more of these examples as well as other situations may lead to the
administration of an incorrect medication, unnecessary surgery,
accidental baby swapping, etc.
[0005] A more robust approach for identifying the individual is
through biometric identification such as a fingerprint, an iris
map, acoustical properties of the ear, etc. By way of example, an
ear probe may send a tone into the ear and listens for either
reflected sound or otoacoustic emissions. Both of these approaches
can be used to uniquely identify the individual through a biometric
that typically cannot be lost or stolen. Even when using an ear
thermometer device and a biometric ear probe or other biometric
device, the user still has to manually record the temperature of
the individual and associate the temperature with the correct
biometrically identified individual. Thus, even when using more
robust identification techniques, recorded measurements are still
susceptible to human error.
[0006] In one embodiment, a physiological measurement device is
illustrated. The device concurrently measures a physiological state
of an individual and determines an identity the individual. The
device includes a measurement component that measures the
physiological state of the individual, and an identification
component that concurrently determines the identity of the
individual. A processing component of the device associates the
physiological state of the individual with the identity of the
individual.
[0007] One advantage includes concurrently measuring a
physiological state of an individual and identifying the
individual.
[0008] Another advantage resides in using a single device to
concurrently identify an individual and measure at least one
physiological state of the individual.
[0009] Another advantage lies in mitigating human error associated
with manually associating physiological and identity
information.
[0010] Another advantage resides in storing physiological state and
identify information for a plurality of individuals.
[0011] Another advantage includes conveying correlated
physiological state and identify information for one or more
individuals to other components.
[0012] Still further advantages will become apparent to those of
ordinary skill in the art upon reading and understanding the
detailed description of the preferred embodiments.
[0013] FIG. 1 illustrates a physiological measurement system that
concurrently measures physiological state information and
identification of an individual.
[0014] FIG. 2 illustrates another embodiment of the physiological
measurement system.
[0015] FIG. 3 illustrates an embodiment in which the physiological
measurement system includes an electronic ear thermometer.
[0016] FIG. 4 illustrates a reflected sound technique for
facilitating identifying an individual via ear characteristics
unique to the individual.
[0017] FIG. 5 illustrates a particular embodiment of the
physiological measurement system having an electronic ear
thermometer.
[0018] FIG. 6 illustrates the physiological measurement system
within a body area network.
[0019] FIG. 7 illustrates a method for using the physiological
measurement system to concurrently measure a temperature and
identify an individual via an ear of the individual.
[0020] FIG. 1 illustrates a physiological measurement system
("system") 10 that concurrently measures various physiological
information representative of at least a physiological state and an
identification of an individual. Suitable information indicative of
physiological state includes, but is not limited to, temperature,
pulse, blood pressure, blood-oxygen percent, heart rate, ECG/EKG or
other heart electrical signals, etc., and suitable information
indicative of identification includes, but is not limited to, a
fingerprint, an iris map, acoustical properties of the ear,
etc.
[0021] The system 10 includes a measurement component 12 for
collecting physiological state information for one more
physiological systems (e.g., circulatory, respiratory,
cardiovascular, etc.) of the individual. For example, the
measurement component 12 can include sensors for sensing
temperature, blood pressure, blood-oxygen percent, heart rate,
heart electrical activity, eye pressure, etc. An identification
component 14 works in conjunction with the measurement component 12
in order to identify the individual while collecting the
physiological state information. For example, while using a
temperature sensor (not shown) of the measurement component 12 to
measure a temperature from within an ear of the individual, an
identification sensor (not shown) of the identification component
12 is used to identify the individual through biometrics such as
unique characteristics of the ear (e.g., via reflected sound,
otoacoustic (spontaneous and evoked) emissions, etc.).
[0022] In another example, while using an inner-ear blood pressure
sensor (not shown) or a pulseoximeter of the measurement component
12 to measure a blood pressure or a blood oxygen level of the
individual from the ear, an identification sensor (not shown) of
the identification component 12 is used to identify the individual
through unique characteristics of the ear. In another example,
while using an eye pressure sensor (not shown) of the measurement
component 12 to measure a pressure within an eye of the individual,
an identification sensor (not shown) of the identification
component 12 is used to identify the individual through an iris map
or retinal scan. In another example, while using a finger blood
pressure sensor (not shown) or a finger pulseoximeter of the
measurement component 12 to measure a blood pressure or blood
oxygen level of the individual, an identification sensor (not
shown) of the identification component 12 is used to identify the
individual through a fingerprint. It is to be appreciated that the
sensor used for measuring the physiological state and for
identification may be two independent sensors or substantially the
same sensor. For instance, the QRS of a heart beat may be derived
from information obtained from the same infrared sensor (e.g., in
an ear-thermometer) used to measure temperature.
[0023] It is to be understood that the above examples are provided
for explanatory purposes and are not limiting. In other
embodiments, various other physiological state information is
concurrently obtained along with the identity of the individual. In
addition, the physiological state information and the
identification may or may not be determined from substantially
similar data. Furthermore, the identity information can be used to
verify the identity of the individual. For instance, the identity
of the individual as determined by the identification component 12
can be cross-checked with a wrist band or other mechanism or
indicia used to identify the individual.
[0024] The system 10 further includes a processing component 16
that receives and associates the physiological information
collected by the measurement component 12 and the identification
component 14. Thus, the measured physiological information
indicative of a state of one or more physiological systems of the
individual is associated with the measured physiological
information indicative of an identity of the individual. This
association enables the system 10 to measure and store
physiological state information from a plurality of different
individuals. Subsequently, the physiological state information of
any one of the individuals can be extracted from the stored data
based on the identity of the individual.
[0025] The processing component 16 associates raw data with each
individual and/or includes componentry (not shown) to process
(e.g., filter, condition, amplify, threshold, etc.) the
physiological state information into data more meaningful to the
person acquiring the physiological information. For instance, the
processing component 16 can associate resistance, current, voltage,
capacitance, etc. readings with an individual and/or convert such
readings to a temperature, heart rate, blood pressure, etc. and
associate the processed data with the individual.
[0026] The processing component 16 stores the raw and/or processed
data along with the identity of the individual in a storage
component 18, which allows the user of the system 10 to measure and
retain physiological information from a plurality of individuals.
The storage component 18 includes volatile and/or non-volatile
memory for storage of such data. The storage capacity of the
storage component 18 is based on the application and cost
considerations.
[0027] A display component 20 is used to present the collected
physiological information to a user of the system 10. The
processing component 16 presents newly acquired and/or stored
physiological information on the display for the user to observe.
The user determines the display information, for example, by using
the system 10 to acquire physiological information and/or selecting
stored physiological information. The display 20 can include at
least one of one or more light emitting diodes (LEDs),
seven-segment displays, liquid crystals displays, etc. Various
actuators and sensors (not shown) are used to initiate measurements
and/or retrieve stored data. For instance, the display 20 may
include touch-screen technology to navigate through menus of
options. In another instance, the system 10 may include physical
buttons, dials, switches, triggers, etc. that invoke one or more
actions.
[0028] A power supply 22 powers the components of the system 10.
The power supply 22 can include one or more internal batteries
(e.g., re-chargeable and non-rechargeable) and/or an adapter that
converts AC power to suitable power.
[0029] The system 10 can be a portable device such as a hand held
device or a device (removeably) affixed to a mobile structure that
moves on a wheel(s), or a static device mounted to a supporting
structure such as a wall or other relatively stationary
instrumentation.
[0030] With reference to FIG. 2, the system 10 optionally includes
portable storage 24 and/or network componentry 26. The portable
storage 24 includes storage such as various types of flash memory.
This enables the user of the system 10 to store and transfer
physiological information by storing such information within the
portable storage 24, removing the portable storage component 24
from the system 10, and connecting it to a suitable interface of
another device such as a computer, a database, a monitoring
station, etc. The portable storage 24 is also used to load
applications, firmware, utilities, etc. onto the system 10, for
example, by first storing applications, firmware, utilities, etc.
on the portable storage 24, connecting the portable storage 24 to
the system 10, and manually and/or automatically loading the
applications, firmware, utilities, etc.
[0031] The network component 26 is also used to convey measured
and/or stored physiological information to other systems. The
network component 26 is associated with various wired and/or
wireless communication protocols for communicating with networks
such as a cellular network, a Personal Communication Service (PCS),
a Wide Area Network (WAN) (e.g., the Internet), a Local Area
Networks (LAN), a Metropolitan Area Network (MAN), a Campus Area
Network (CAN), a Home Area Network (HAN), a Personal Area Networks
(PAN), a Body Area Network (BAN), and the like. Suitable
communication ports include Ethernet, Universal Serial Bus (USB),
parallel, serial, optical, infrared, FireWire, etc.
[0032] Stored physiological information obtained from the system 10
via the portable storage 24 and/or the network component 26 can be
analyzed and displayed according to each individual since each
measurement is associated with an identity of an individual. Other
information such as date, an identity of the person taking the
measurement, an identity of a doctor, etc. can also be associated
with the temperatures. This enables temperatures to be delineated
by individual and analyzed over time, separated across the people
using the system 10 to take measurements, grouped by physician,
etc.
[0033] FIG. 3 illustrates a preferred embodiment in which the
measurement component 12 includes an electronic ear thermometer 28.
In one instance, the electronic ear thermometer 28 is a
thermoelectric thermometer that uses thermoelectric current to
measure temperature. This type of thermometer reads the infrared
heat waves released by the eardrum. A temperature is obtained by
pulling the ear backward to straighten the ear canal and aiming the
ear probe between the opposite eye and earlobe. The electronic ear
thermometer 28 measures the infrared heat of the eardrum and
converts it to an electric signal representative of the
temperature. This temperature correlates to the temperature of the
hypothalamus, which is the temperature controlling system of the
brain. Typically, this type of thermometer measures temperature
relatively quickly (e.g., less than 2 seconds) with respect to
non-ear thermometers. It also does not require cooperation by the
individual (like holding a thermometer under an arm, in a mouth,
etc.) and does not usually cause any discomfort.
[0034] As the electronic ear thermometer 28 measures temperature,
the identification component 14 concurrently identifies the person
via any suitable ear identification technique. For instance, in one
embodiment a reflected sound technique is used. This embodiment is
illustrated in FIG. 4 in which the identification component 14
includes a first transducer 30 (e.g., a speaker) that is used to
emit a sound wave, or an excitation signal, into the eardrum and a
second transducer 32 (e.g., a microphone) that captures a reflected
sound wave, or echo signal. The echo signal is characteristic of
the eardrum/ear canal combination and is unique to the
individual.
[0035] In another embodiment, an otoacoustic approach is used.
Otoacoustic emissions are weak emissions from the inner ear which
can be recorded in the occluded ear canal using a relatively
sensitive microphone. The otoacoustic emissions can arise
spontaneously or be evoked by presenting acoustic stimuli. Applying
two pure tones simultaneously in an inharmonic ratio leads to
additional tones (e.g., distortion products) caused by the
nonlinear behavior of the human auditory system. It is to be
appreciated that the foregoing examples are provided for
illustrative purpose and do not limit the invention. Other
techniques such as ultrasound and the like are also
contemplated.
[0036] FIG. 5 illustrates a particular example of the system 10 in
which the measurement component 12 includes the electronic ear
thermometer 28. Depicted is a hand-held unit having a housing 34
that protects various componentry (e.g., electronics) of the system
10 from contamination, destruction, etc. The housing 34 may be
hermetically sealed to prevent ingress of fluids and/or particulate
matter.
[0037] A shaft (or probe) 36 houses the ear thermometer 28. The
shaft 36 is suitably designed for penetrating an opening into the
ear canal. The shaft 36 is placed in the ear canal of the
individual such that the ear thermometer 28 is suitably positioned
for obtaining measurements. The ear thermometer 28 includes a
sensor (not shown) such as an infrared sensor which collects
signals emitted from with the ear canal. A transducer (not shown)
of the ear thermometer 28 converts the collected signals to
suitable representations such as electric currents, voltages,
resistance, etc.
[0038] The shaft 36 also includes a plurality of transceivers 40
that emit acoustic signals into the ear canal and that receive
signals reflected from the physical structured within the ear. The
received signals are correlated with the emitted signals to obtain
the physical structure in the ear and are unique to each individual
such that they can be used to identify each individual. An optional
sheath (not shown) can be placed over the end of the shaft 36 to
protect the shaft and subsequent individuals from contamination.
The sheath and/or shaft 36 can be cleanable and/or sterilizable or
disposable. The temperature and the ear-identification information
are concurrently obtained and associated.
[0039] FIG. 6 illustrates the system 10 residing within a wireless
body area network (BAN). The system 10 is depicted at various
locations proximate an individual for concurrently measuring
physiological state information and identity. At a first position
42, the system 10 is positioned proximate to an ear of the
individual for concurrently measuring a temperature of the
individual and uniquely identifying the individual from ear
characteristics. In other embodiments, blood pressure, blood oxygen
level, etc. can also be acquired at 42 along with the unique
identity. At a second position 44, the system 10 is positioned
proximate to an eye of the individual for concurrently measuring an
eye pressure, etc. of the individual and uniquely identifying the
individual via an iris map. At an Nth position 46, the system 10 is
positioned proximate to a finger of the individual for concurrently
measuring a pulse, blood pressure, blood oxygen level, etc. of the
individual and uniquely identifying the individual via a
fingerprint. It is to be appreciated that these examples are
provided for explanatory purposes and are not limiting. The system
10 can be used to measure various other physiological state
information and identify the individual through other
biometrics.
[0040] The physiological state information and identity of the
individual can be displayed by the system 10 via the display
component 20 and/or conveyed to other components via the portable
memory 24 and/or the network componentry 26 as described in detail
above. In addition, the system 10 can leverage a body area network
(BAN) 48 to convey the physiological state and identity information
to other components and/or networks.
[0041] One or more sensors and/or emitters 50 are also suitably
placed on the individual to acquire physiological information. The
one or more sensors and/or emitters 50 capture Electrocardiograms
(ECGs), Electroencephalograms (EEGs), Electromyograms (EMGs),
non-invasive blood pressure (NiBP), pulse, respirations, blood
oxygen (SpO2), etc. In addition, the one or more sensors and/or
emitters 50 can transmit information such as current medications,
scheduled procedures, etc. The network component 26 can convey the
associated physiological measurement and the associated patient
identification of the present patient, or potentially other
patients, to a corresponding receiving element of the body area
network. These measurements and associated identifications are
transmitted or otherwise communicated with the other data from the
body area network.
[0042] FIG. 7 illustrates a method for using the physiological
measurement system to concurrently measure temperature and identify
an individual via an ear of the individual. At 52, a shaft that
houses an ear thermometer measuring device and ear identification
device is suitably positioned in the ear canal of the individual.
Prior to insertion, an optional sheath can be placed over the end
of the shaft to protect the shaft and individuals from
contamination.
[0043] At 54, the ear thermometer measures a temperature of the
individual. In one embodiment, the ear thermometer includes
thermoelectric componentry that uses thermoelectric current to
measure temperature by reading infrared heat waves released by the
eardrum. A converter converts the measured heat waves into electric
signals representative of temperature. In other embodiments, other
techniques can be used to measure the temperature.
[0044] Concurrently, at 56, the ear identification device
identifies the individual through unique characteristics of the
ear. In one embodiment, a reflected sound technique is used in
which a sound wave is emitted into the ear and a reflected sound
wave is captured. The reflected sound wave is characteristic of the
eardrum and is unique to the individual. In another embodiment, an
otoacoustic approach is used in which a spontaneous or evoked
otoacoustic emission generated via a number of different cellular
mechanisms within the inner ear is captured. Similarly, this
emission is characteristic of the eardrum and is unique to the
individual.
[0045] At 58, the temperature and identification of the individual
is associated. The temperature and identification of the individual
can be displayed by the person taking the measurements. Optionally,
the temperature and identification of the individual can be locally
stored and/or conveyed to other components through network
componentry, portable storage, and/or a body area network.
[0046] The invention has been described with reference to the
preferred embodiments. Modifications and alterations may occur to
others upon reading and understanding the preceding detailed
description. It is intended that the invention be constructed as
including all such modifications and alterations insofar as they
come within the scope of the appended claims or the equivalents
thereof.
* * * * *